Open-Ended Crocodile Strap for a Vertex Revue

This build had two problems to solve at once. The bars on the case are fixed, so a conventional two-piece strap cannot be threaded through them, and the owner measures 225mm (8.9 in) around the wrist, which is past the point where most stock straps stop. An open-ended crocodile strap for a Vertex Revue answered both in one piece.

The order came from England, for a watch the owner described as a Vertex Revue gold Unilever presentation watch. We built to that description rather than to a catalog reference, because there is no catalog reference to build to. That is the normal situation with presentation and long-service watches: nobody stocks a replacement band cut to fit them, so the measurements have to come from the owner.

Build sheet

Leather	Brown crocodile
Build	Open-ended, for fixed bars
Strap length	90/145mm (3.5 in / 5.7 in)
Wrist	225mm (8.9 in)
Buckle width	14mm (0.55 in)
Buckle	Classic, gold

Why these choices

Fixed bars are part of the case rather than removable hardware. There is no spring bar to compress and no gap to feed a strap end through, so a conventional band will not mount at all. The open-ended build leaves both ends of the strap unstitched at the tip so they pass around the fixed bar and are closed behind it. It is the one construction that fits this kind of case, and it is the reason the order was placed as a strap made to the owner's own measurements instead of a stock size.

The length is the second half of the problem. At 225mm, this wrist sits inside the range we treat as extra-long, and most makers stop around 8.5 in. The strap was cut 90/145mm, which puts the buckle and the tail where they belong on a wrist that size rather than leaving the tip barely reaching the first keeper. If your own measurement is in the same territory, the extra-long watch straps are cut on the same basis.

Brown crocodile carries a gold buckle well, and the owner asked for the darker end of our brown. Crocodile softens with wear and takes a hand-rubbed patina, which suits a watch that has already had a long life. One note on the numbers above: 14mm is the buckle width, not the lug width. Those are different measurements, and the buckle width alone does not tell you what will fit between the lugs. The strap itself came from our crocodile leather straps, made up here as a brown crocodile strap.

Questions we get about this build

Can you make an open-ended crocodile strap for a Vertex Revue, or another watch with fixed bars?
Yes. We need the width of the gap between the lugs and, where the bar sits close to the case, the clearance underneath it. Send those two numbers with your wrist measurement and we can cut the ends to pass around the bar. A jeweler-measured figure is worth having if you are not confident with calipers.

How long a strap does a 225mm wrist need?
This one was cut 90/145mm and the tail lands correctly. Length depends on your case width as well as your wrist, so we ask for both. Anything from roughly 8.5 in upward is outside standard sizing and we cut it to order.

If you have a watch with fixed bars, a presentation piece nobody makes a band for, or a wrist that standard lengths do not reach, send us the measurements and we will build to them. Straps are made to order, so allow two to three weeks to delivery.